TeaSource "Official" Black Tea Topic

TeaSource was nominated and confirmed for our TeaVendor Guide under the Black Tea category. If you would like to nominate them to other categories, you may do this, otherwise limit discussion to their Black Tea offerings. Thank you!

NEW! Official Black Tea Vendor Guide for TeaSource.com Consider this a perennial topic for Black teas from TeaSource to discuss and review.

I just want to give props to TeaSource for their excellent product, even more excellent customer service, and quick shipping. I have ordered from them several times and they are always a pleasure to work with.

Their teas are always well-packaged and fresh.

An example of their great service: A couple months ago, I placed an order, but then had a dog emergency and needed $$$. I emailed TeaSource and asked if it was possible to cancel my order and get a refund. They had already processed and packed my order, but they were very nice and canceled it for me. To have customer service like that is above and beyond, and I think it's something to appreciate!

I was able to order again last week and somehow missed entering my $5 off coupon code. Again, they provided excellent customer service and gave me the $5 credit after I asked about it. I highly recommend them!

The website is bare bones. So is the local shop, really. Bill Waddington is devoted to getting people good tea at low cost, which accounts for a lot of the minimalism.

The service you mention is part of that; he has a strong loathing for mall tea stores that try to upsell their customers. His people don't do that, and you can't actually get them to recommend an expensive tea by asking an open-ended question; you have to ask about the specific tea itself. They're committed to not abusing their customers' wallets.

I'm a bit staggered by the sheer variety of black teas I've sampled there; it took me a while, but I eventually learned to take the descriptions very literally. If it says "meaty", for example, the tea will taste like meat somewhere in the flavor profile. There was one Russian-type black that tasted like it had been boiled with beef jerky.